“I am really proud of the performance of the players. They worked hard. I think we did enough to win. We put a lot of emphasis on being aggressive and not passive. We did really well,” Michael Skubala, one of the three Leeds coaches who temporarily replaced Jesse Marsch, who was fired on Monday, evaluates Wednesday’s 2-2 draw.
There was almost a repeat of the weekend sensation when Everton beat Premier League leaders Arsenal 1-0 in their first game under Sean Dyche. Leeds led from the first minute, withstood the home team’s pressure and, after Raphaël Varane’s own goal, had a two-goal advantage in the 48th minute.
“I have mixed feelings. Of course, in the end we are happy to get a point, but we actually lost two. Very bad to unacceptable start, you have to be ready to fight. We didn’t do that,” United coach Erik ten Hag frowned after the match, whose team’s final draw was scored between the 62nd and 70th minutes by Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho.
This ended Manchester’s thirteen-match winning streak at Old Trafford across all competitions. Currently the third Premier League team has lost only once at home this year, specifically at the beginning of the season in August against Brighton.
“Leeds’ quick start didn’t surprise me. We knew that against a well-rounded team, they would go at it aggressively, tenaciously and try to get into tackles. And if you start the second half as badly as the first, then you will make the match a lot more complicated,” Ten Haga regretted.
While the Dutch coach’s position is solid, his counterpart Skubala’s future is uncertain. Leeds are working on hiring a new coach, with an official statement expected to introduce him within days.
Of course, it is possible that the temporarily appointed trio, or at least part of it, will remain on the bench. “I just want to help the club in the best way I can. I’ve been really busy with other things these past few days. Other people will decide on the next step, but it’s a great opportunity for players and employees,” Skubala is clear.
Wednesday’s duel was the end of the 8th round, on Sunday the two opponents will face each other again, this time on the ground of Leeds. “I’m disappointed that we didn’t win. We wanted to see the match at least to a successful end, and I think we partially succeeded,” added Skubala. Thanks to the draw, Leeds moved up to 16th place, but they are one point ahead of the already mentioned Everton, who are first in the relegation zone.
